Winter and muffins

Well, it appears that winter has arrived. As I may have mentioned before, it seems that everyone around here has a little bit of PTSD related to last winter, and there is a general sense of dread about the weather change. At the same time, while we have had a bit of snow it hasn't stuck around, which is different from this time last year. It is starting to get cold, but the weather is still a bit erratic, and we haven't had a stretch yet where it didn't get above freezing for more than a few days in a row. Also, we are better prepared for winter's arrival this year – we have our winter tires on, we have arranged for underground parking at work for the winter months, and we own a snow shovel and weather appropriate outerwear. We also have a garage this year, and although it is detached from the house and requires a short walk outside, it will definitely make a huge difference since there will be no scraping or brushing off snow to worry about when we leave for work in the morning. So although the temperature outside is currently -11°C/12°F, and the low tonight is predicted to be -21°C/-6°F, we are reasonably relaxed about the weather.

I continue to have my ups and downs related to recovery, but the past month has come with sort of a change. Since my surgery, most of the time when I think about times in the past it is about times when I was much more physically able than I am now, and this often makes me sad. But last year around the end of October into November was the first time since surgery that I started to feel at all like myself, and now I find myself reflecting back on a year ago and being able to see how much better I am now than I was then. It's hard to explain, but there is a definite shift.

I have come to accept that regardless of how much more I am able to recover physically, I will never be quite the same. But different does not have to mean worse. Right now different definitely does mean harder, but I am continually learning to adapt to my limitations and improve functionally. A year ago, I didn't really want to think about having to learn to adapt, I wanted things to go back to normal. But at this point, the recovery I'm making is related to learning, not so much to healing. I am glad that my brain is not so set in its ways that it can't learn new ways of doing old things-- and new ways of doing new things, like dealing with the physical challenges of ice, snow, and cold.

One year ago, things were so difficult and I was so easily fatigued that I spent a good deal of my free time sitting on the couch watching TV (mostly the food network). Yesterday, I decided I wanted to make muffins, and while I did have to think about fatigue and being careful not to overdo it, it was generally not such a big deal. I even made up a recipe, because I didn't really like the ones I was able to find. So here is my muffin recipe, made possible by new learning:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup rolled oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup applesauce
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons canola oil

Mix together dry ingredients in one bowl and wet ingredients in another, then combine being careful not to over mix. Pour batter into a greased muffin pan, and cook at 375°F until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean (I didn't really pay attention to the time, maybe 20 minutes?). Makes 12. Enjoy!

UPDATE
P.S. I almost forgot to include an update about Jeff's rib – fortunately it is not cracked, just bruised, and starting to get better :)